Tourist arrivals between April to June increased by 16.9% when compared to the same period last year while total guest nights increased by 11.9%, accordoing to the Malta Hotels and Restaurants Association quarterly survey results, presented to members yesterday.
The MHRA said that the rate at which total guest nights have been increasing is slower than the growth in arrivals, resulting in a decrease in the average length of stay.
Although hotels continued to report a strong overall performance, the shift towards private accommodation continued to increase at a much faster pace than that for collective accommodation.
Guest nights in private accommodation increased by 20.9% and accounted for close to 40% of total guest nights. Guest nights spent in hotels increased by a more conservative 6.7% during the second quarter.
In the first half of the year, almost one million tourists came to Malta and spent more than 6.5 million guest nights, 62% of which in collective accommodation with the rest spent in private accommodation. By June, total tourist expenditure reached slightly more than €750 million resulting in an average spend per guest night of €114.
The survey results continue to affirm the trend towards the strengthening of the hotel sector on the back of consistent growth in Malta’s tourism numbers. Occupancy levels for the 5-star and 3-star sectors increased by 4.7% and 5% respectively. Levels in the 4-star sector remained stable.
The BOV Deloitte survey included research about Malta’s EU Presidency effect on the hospitality sector.
This benefitted significantly as:
• Close to 300 events were hosted in local hotels (mainly 5-star)
• Around 22,000 participants attended these events
• Total revenue generated from these events was just under €850,000
• An additional €850,000 were generated from food and beverages provided during these events
• 22,000 room nights were booked by 8,200 guests with a room revenue of over €3.1 million
MHRA President Tony Zahra reiterated his call on the government to implement concrete measures to address irregular and unlicensed accommodation and other services.